The Changing Face of Photo Books

Over the years photo books have been associated with a collection of unrelated images, which show off the photographer’s best work. Photo books and photo portfolios are still, even in this digital age, the best way to showcase your work, but themed photo books are becoming the new way to go forward.

Dan Milnor, professional photographer and specialist of black and white photography, states that photo books are more than just a collection of images, they are an entity in themselves and the best way to showcase your work is to use the book as a storytelling tool.

A photographer is expected to be able to capture a scene or moment not only in the right light and at the right moment, but be able to express the mood of the scene and story behind it. This is by no means an easy task, and is the main distinction between a highly talented photographer, and a great one.

Dan Milnor has some good tips on how to achieve this goal. Instead of focusing on capturing one image, he suggests to take pictures in sequence. This gives you the chance to immerse yourself in the scene in front of you, and not miss the story that is being told in front of you. When going through the images to put into a book, ensure that the most aesthetic images and the ones most relevant to the story are included.

He goes on to emphasise the importance of playing with light and shadows in black and white photography, and his top tip is to shoot into the light. He enjoys black and white photography due to the form and drama which can be captured through this art of photography.

Personally, I’ve always found black and white photography the greatest challenge, and have avoided the light, thinking that it would overpower the image. Dan Milnor’s work shows that this can be avoided by using the forms of shadow and light to your advantage and to discover the perfect balance between the two in order to create a dramatic effect.

Drama plays an equally important role in the creation of a photo book, as this is the new way forward for photographers.